Good Enough/Crossroads Little Chance's Easter
An idea that struck me around 2 AM. Not sure how I feel about it but maybe you guys will like it! Enjoy.
Good Enough/Crossroads--Little Chance's Easter
Not for the first time, six-year-old Charlie Argent found his attention to the sermon ebbing and, not for the first time, his father, David, irritably nudged him awake, casting his son a sharp glare and scowl. Charlie looked downward and tried to feel ashamed of himself, but he couldn't bring himself to. It was way too early on the weekend to be dragged out of bed and the only reason he hadn't complained so far this morning was the promise of free candy.
"Charlie, are you okay?" whispered his mother on the other side of his father.
"He's fine, Selene," his father insisted, trying his hardest to focus on the sermon.
Charlie rubbed his eye and focused on the emphatic preacher in the pulpit, dressed in a robe of royal purple and gold. And overly dramatic display and enthusiastic speaking, but it mostly went too far over his head to sink in. Somewhere in his mind, he knew he was supposed to be listening intently, to be absorbing each and every word, but all he could think of were those baskets full of chocolates and goodies downstairs for each of the cubs in the church.
Charlie cast his glance around the sanctuary--he could tell that the other cubs weren't focusing either. Some of them had fallen asleep completely and others were occupying themselves with other things. One of them, he saw, had a Rubik's cube that he was solving and yet another was drawing in--WAS HE DRAWING IN A BIBLE?!
He shouldn't do that! His parents are going to be super mad! Charlie thought worriedly.
Charlie felt his father poke his arm and he looked forward again. How long was this going to last? It felt like forever... and he wondered if those chocolates downstairs included dark chocolate...
"Well, he preached better than normal," Selene noted pleasantly, smiling widely as they walked out of the church. She waved kindly to the other members they passed, wishing them happy Easter as everyone wished to them.
"He certainly did," David agreed. "Then again, he should. Today's an important holiday. And don't you eat any of that until we get home," he added rapidly.
Charlie, who was walking slightly ahead of his parents, had pulled his paw out of the baby blue basket he was carrying, almost overstuffed with candies and fake grass. He looked back at his father, who was scowling, his face pulled into a disapproving glare.
"Sorry, Daddy," Charlie murmured.
"Oh, just let him have one," Selene said. "Don't be such a stick in the mud."
"I'm not. I just don't want him leaving wrappers everywhere," David said, unlocking the car. He opened the door for his wife as his son climbed into the backseat. With a brisk pace, he walked around to the other side and got into the driver's seat. He adjusted the rearview and frowned. "I told you to wait!"
"I didn't get one!" Charlie yipped--he had only been sifting through them to see everything inside.
"Oh, just let him have one," Selene said. "Just one, okay?"
Charlie waited for his father's say-so, but the scowling white wolf merely rolled his eyes and jabbed his key into the ignition, turning it. Quickly, Chance pulled out a small, bite-sized candy and unwrapped it, savoring the chocolate-y taste as it coated his tongue.
"So, are we still going to your parents'?" Selene asked David.
"Yes, we are," David said. "Ma wanted to see Charles dressed up."
"Oh, she'll love it," Selene said excitedly, looking back at her son. "He looks like a little angel. I'll have to take a picture to send to my mother."
Chance looked down at his clothing--he felt stifled with this stupid bowtie around his neck, these tightly tied shoes and this ugly, pastel yellow shirt.
"Can't I go home and wear my Superwolf shirt?"
"No, Ma wants to see you dressed up like that," David said simply.
"But I don't like it. It's itchy."
"It's just for today," David said. "Stop whining."
"I'm not whining!"
"And don't raise your voice at me!" David snapped.
Charlie silenced himself immediately, suppressing a sob. Almost at once, Selene turned on David.
"Stop yelling at him!" she hissed. "He's about to cry because you're so short-tempered!"
David rolled his eyes. "He's whining about wearing clothes."
"Because he doesn't like them," she explained. "I'm not surprised--he's six."
"One of these days, he's going to have to learn that you can always do what you want to do," David countered. "And you can't keep shielding him."
"I will as long as you're acting immature."
"Aww, look at you!" Gracie Argent gushed as Charlie bounded into his grandmother's house. The elderly wolf leaned down and pulled her grandson into a hug.
"Happy Easter, Grammy!" Charlie said pleasantly.
"Happy Easter, Charlie. Did you get lots of candy?"
"He got too much," David harrumphed as he stepped over the threshold into the house. "He's only had one and he's already running up and down the street."
"He's exaggerating, Gracie," Selene scoffed. "He just ran to the door. He loves coming by to see his grandma and grandpa. Where is Peter?"
"Oh, he's in the garage, looking for one of his old tools," Gracie said. "Oh, I made some special cookies for you, little one. You want some?"
"Yes, please!" Charlie beamed.
"Just_one_!" David insisted.
"Oh, shame on you," Gracie griped. "Let him enjoy his sweets. You had a sweet tooth when you were his age."
"Yeah and I got two cavities," David countered.
Gracie scowled. "You can have as much as you want, sweetie. And go say hi to Grandpa."
Charlie hurried into the kitchen where, sure enough, he found a pan of freshly baked and still-soft cookies on the table. He reached up and gingerly grabbed one, blowing on it before carefully putting it into his mouth. Buttery and flaky, Charlie felt as if his entire body warmed as made his way through the house, beyond the den and into the garage.
There, going through his large, red toolbox in the corner, was his grandfather, Peter, grumbling under his breath with a cigarette sticking out his mouth. The old wolf looked over when he heard the door open and smiled.
"There you are, you little monster," Peter said playfully. "I was wondering if you guys were still coming."
Charlie opened his mouth to speak but coughed. For a moment, Peter was confused but then remembered the cigarette in his mouth. He quickly threw it onto the concrete floor and stamped it out in a slight panic.
"Oh, shit. I'm sorry, Charles," Peter said, taking his grandson's paw and leading him back into the house, inside the den.
"It's okay," Charlie insisted. "Happy Easter!"
"Happy Easter to you too," Peter said. He took a moment to take in Charlie's attire. "I bet your mom loved dressing you up like that. You're her own little dress-up doll."
"I don't like it," Charlie huffed. "I wanted to were my Superwolf shirt."
"I bet," Peter noted, kneeling. With deft fingers, he undid Charlie's bowtie. "Better?"
"Better," Charlie agreed.
"And this is why I don't go to church anymore," Peter scoffed. "I don't like dressing up either, Charles. It's uncomfortable."
"... But don't you believe in God?"
Almost at once, Peter's expression changed--his earlier mirth and jovial attitude had changed to confusion and unease. "Hell, I believe in God. But I don't gotta go to church to believe."
"But Daddy says you have to go."
"Well, you should, but... Hey, Davey," Peter greeted as his son stepped into the den.
"Hey, Pa," David said, frowning as he sniffed the air. "Were you smoking?"
"Yeah, I forgot you guys were coming. I know Selene don't like me smoking around her baby."
"You sure didn't care when Brad and I were growing up," David scoffed.
"Well, I regret it now that Brad smokes," Peter countered. "And don't you"--he tousled Charlie's hair--"ever start. Smoking is really bad for you."
"Then why do you smoke?"
Again, there was a look of panic on his grandfather's face.
"You know, you ask some really hard questions," Peter said, sitting down on one of the armchairs as David seated himself on the couch. "First God, now smoking."
"God?" David repeated incredulously.
"Yeah, this cub of yours asked me if I believed in God," Peter recounted. He let out a whistle. "Even you never asked me that before."
Charlie got onto the couch beside his father, who looked genuinely surprised. "I never would've thought he'd ask a question like that," David confessed. "Especially since he falls asleep in church every other Sunday."
"Well, of course he does," Peter says. "He's a little guy. You fell asleep when you were little like him too."
"I'm not little!" Charlie broke in.
"I never fell asleep in church," David countered, ignoring his son's interruption.
"Oh, bullshit," Peter scoffed.
"Language," David warned. "Selene'll kill me if he starts swearing before double-digits."
"Oh, sorry," Peter said, shaking his head. "Old habits die hard. But yes, you did fall asleep in church. I remember one time when Pastor Evanston called me out for letting you sleep. He's just a little tyke. You can't force religion down his throat at his age. He's only five."
"I'm six!" Charlie griped.
"He's only six," Peter corrected.
"Well, I want him to have good morals and values," David said, patting his son's head. He frowned. "Where's your bowtie?"
Peter held up the unraveled bowtie. "Was it your idea or Selene's to dress him up like that?"
"What's wrong with it?"
"He's not some doll to dress up," Peter snorted. "He looked like he was about to choke with this wrapped around his neck. You look like you're stifling this little lad."
"Everything I do, I learned from you and Ma," David said.
Peter huffed. "Listen, you may not see it now, but if you don't ease up, he's going to hate you in the future."
"No, I won't!" Charlie insisted.
They looked at him, as if surprised by his presence. Almost at once, Peter's tone changed, becoming softer, kinder. "I just think you ought to give him the chance to be himself. Life is all about having chances to be who you want to be. Give him that chance."
"He'll have plenty of chances to be himself. But it's my job as a parent to make sure he goes down the right path."
"But the 'right path' might not be the one you want for him," Peter remarked. "He may end up being something you never saw coming. And then you'll have to live with the fact that your son isn't who you thought he was because you never took the time to let him be himself."
"That was nice of her," Selene remarked as they drove away. The sun had fallen--they had spent far longer there than they had anticipated, mostly because Gracie had been kind enough to cook them a hearty, healthy dinner. "Although I feel stuffed. Almost like being pregnant again."
David chortled. "I definitely understand but I could never pass on Ma's cooking. She's a masterful chef." He glanced up into the rearview. "Did you get enough to eat, Charlie?"
"Yep!" Charlie chirped back. "So, Daddy, did you really fall asleep in church before?"
David sighed. "I might have when I was little but I know better. And I just want you to get the most out of each lesson you're taught. I know it seems boring to you, but there are important life lessons to be learned."
"Okay... I'm sorry for falling asleep. Are you mad at me?"
"No. I'm not."
"Can I have another candy?"
David spared a glance back to his rearview. He could see his son's paw already hovering over the Easter basket.
"Alright. You can have one more. But save the rest for later. Don't want you rotting your teeth out."
Almost faster than ever before, Charlie's paw darted into the basket and whipped out a wrapped chocolate, tearing into the paper and tossing it into his mouth.
"Thanks, Daddy!" Charlie said pleasantly. "I love you!"
"I love you too, Chance."
Charlie's head cocked slightly in confusion. Selene peered over. "What'd you call him?"
"Chance," David said. "When Pa and I were talking, he told me how live is about chances. I don't know why but I really liked the way that sounded. And I think he should be reminded of it every day. So, I think it's a good nickname for him."
"Chance," she mused, chewing on the word.
"What do you think, Charles? Do you like your new nickname?"
"My name is Chance?" Charlie wondered.
"Your_nickname_," David corrected. "So, instead of being called 'Charles' or 'Charlie', we'll call you 'Chance'. Do you like it?"
Charlie thought for a moment. "Chance... I like it! It sounds grown-up!"
David chuckled. "Alright, then. Chance it is. Happy Easter, Chance."
"Happy Easter, Daddy!"